Compliance Stuff

Did you hear that? It was the other shoe dropping.  Approximately one month after  President Trump rescinded Executive Order 11246 , the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs is preparing to reduce its staff by 90 percent, according to multiple news sources. News sources describe a memorandum from the  OFCCP’s acting director, Michael Schloss , to the Acting Secretary of Labor, that outlines the OFCCP’s strategy to reduce staff, while maintaining a limited field presence to review contractors for compliance with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act.  The changes involve reductions From 55 offices to four offices. From 479 employees to 50 employees . The OFCCP’s policy division would be r educed to five employees who will suggest changes to agency regulations “designed to reflect the removal of EO 11246" and shift focus to Section 503 and VEVRAA. The OFCCP is also planning to eliminate its division of...

Among the blizzard of executive orders issued following his inauguration, President Trump revoked former President Biden’s executive order addressing artificial intelligence (AI). A few days later, on January 23, 2025, President Trump issued his own AI executive order, entitled, “ Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence ” (“AI Executive Order”). As background, on October 30, 2023, then-President Biden issued an “Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence, ” which addressed concerns surrounding the use of AI. It identified several areas, including labor, competition, cybersecurity, education, health, and privacy. The Biden order not only called on federal agencies to collaborate, provide more guidance, and conduct training, but it also urged agencies to develop principles and best practices to mitigate harms and maximize benefits of AI for workers . Throughout the remainder of his term, President Biden’...